UK: Alstom has told Metro Report International that the 20 Innovia APM 200 automated peoplemover vehicles ordered for use on the Terminal 5 Transit at London’s Heathrow Airport are expected to be delivered from September.
The bodies are being produced in Scotland by Alexander Dennis then shipped to the USA for assembly, testing and commissioning by Alstom in Pittsburgh.
The new vehicles will be used to augment the existing fleet of technically similar cars supplied for the 700 m long airside Terminal 5 Transit route by Bombardier Transportation when Terminal 5 opened in 2008. They will enable more shuttles to run as demand for flights ramps up post-pandemic, and improve the resilience of the service, Alstom says.
The cars will be technically similar to the ones currently in use but feature updated interiors with LED lighting, additional passenger handholds, CCTV and LCD signage. They will have the latest of generation automatic train control hardware and software, upgraded HVAC, air compressors, propulsion systems, a sleep mode for remote power down and start-up, and enhanced maintenance diagnostics.
The cars are being supplied under a €63m contract signed in June 1999 which was transferred to Alstom when it acquired Bombardier Transportation. The contract also includes changes to existing onboard and station passenger communication systems.
As part of the project the South Heavy Maintenance Bay is being upgraded by Mace to cater for the 20 cars. Mechan is supplying 10 bespoke mobile jacks that will operate in conjunction with an existing wheel change unit. The close proximity between the car jacking point and the large wheels requires a narrow jack, which must also be compact enough to fit into a lift that is used to access the underground maintenance facility.
